In the period of Shang dynasty, agriculture achieved great development; accompanied by a certain scale of mulberry silkworm industry as silk production had a relatively high technological level and complicated loom and weaving skills emerged. The governor of the Shang dynasty attached great importance to the economic status of mulberry silkworm. Though with a limited quantity of silk fabrics in Shang dynasty found in archaeology, figured silk has emerged, indicating that the weaving technology at that time has reached a certain level. Therefore, under the background at that time, people had no sense on cultivation and development of branded goods. At the earliest, only the emperor could use silk fabrics. However, the rapid development of silk industry made silk culture constantly integrate into the Chinese culture in terms of geography and society; moreover, the flourish and use of silk allowed it to shine in clothing, economy, art and culture and became an indispensable high-end article of Chinese merchants in foreign trade. Meanwhile, in the period of Shang and Zhou dynasties, the Silk Road has formed and external exchange has been enhanced. All this has laid a foundation for the prosperity of silk industry in the period of Han and Tang dynasties.
展开▼
